being with us tonight here. and thank you, president obama, of course for being our guest on the "hardball" college tour. and also to the american university for hosting us. good night. good evening, americans. from the north country in detroit lakes, minnesota, where it's below zero. this is "the ed show." let's get to work. >> solid hiring. >> steady progress. >> larry hein. >> mcdonald's corporation has well over the money to pay us what we deserve. >> they're protesting their salaries. >> we work too damn hard. >> waiting on that pepper,

julio. >> give workers a living wage and real shot at the american dream. >> don't simply feed fish. >> give me that fish! >> what they're demanding is $15 an hour in pay. $7.25, which equates to a little more than $15,000 a year. >> we all got to start small, but not that small. >> they also want to form unions without what they call employer retaliation. >> don't give me any lip. >> fast food workers aren't just, you know, simple people. >> wants the to come out of their office and live our life for one month. do it for one month, and i guarantee they will be out here striking with us. >> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. to start tonight, let's focus on three words. deserve, want and need. every american worker thinks,

you know, i deserve a raise. every american worker wants a raise. but we're at a point in our economy with income inequality in america. there's a lot of folks out there that flat out need a raise to lift them out of the poverty zone. you know, people in this country right now are not in the library. they're out in the street. and the national fast food strike that unfolded this week in 130 cities across the country, i think, is a message to our congress, you better wake up. the people are way ahead of you on this. fast food workers, what they did, is that they staged -- they staged a massive protest on thursday, calling for a liveable wage. thousands of protests, and roughly 130 cities around the country went on strike to protest the minimum wage, which stands at $7.25 an hour in this country. you know, folks, this is the largest wave of protests in the history of the fast food industry. workers, basically, are fed up.

their demands are very simple. he they want to live a decent life while working hard a full-time job. but many are part time that don't qualify for benefits. many of them are just asking for 15 bucks an hour. gosh, that's 30 grand a year. you know, it's nothing radical. it's actually pretty american. this is how you move things. here's what the protesters were saying on thursday. >> we are standing in front of the mcdonald's that i tough actually work at. and i actually work two jobs. i work mcdonald's and wendy's and it's still not enough. the cost of living still seems to be rising over my head. >> it's a struggle. at $7.25, i barely can afford light bills or rent. decent shoes for my kids. >> what would an increase mean to you and your family? >> it would mean a lot, knowing that my daughter could get the new shoes she needs for school. not have to wait for someone to give me their used stuff. that means a lot.

and i will increase economy, i will be able to shop and save. >> the congressional progressive caucus also protested with workers in washington, d.c. on thursday. minnesota congressman keith ellison made a heated case to raise the minimum wage. >> inequality, substandard pay, stagnation is wrong oh in this country that proclaims itself to be the land of opportunity. if we are going to call ourselves the land of opportunity, there have got to be some opportunity. we in congress will try to raise the minimum wage. we've got opponents on the other side of the aisle who say there shouldn't be no minimum wage. so we are in difficulty fighting these guys. >> and that is the bottom line. there are folks on the other side that want to get rid of the minimum wage. abolish it. and make no mistake, it's impossible to live off the federal minimum wage. if you make $7.25 an hour, no doubt, it's an entry-level pay scale, no question about it.

you're not going to be there forever. but it means you make about $15,000 a year. and what if you're part-time. that gets cut. factor in the average rent of $865 a month. and it's already impossible to survive. it all goes back to the vulture chart, which i have talked about on this program time and time again. this is america. this isn't fake. this is a real number. the income of the top 1% has skyrocketed since the late '7 ohs, while workers wages have flat lined. that would be the blue line down at the bottom, folks. and this is no doubt a product of republican policies that provide tax breaks to the wealthiest americans. grasp this number since the great recession started. 95% of income gains since 2009 have gone to the top 1%. sure, it's been a great return during the recession for the top 1 and 2%. but that line down at the bottom, it's still there. and the green line is when ronald reagan's trickle-down

economics took effect. this graphic is a product of trickle-down economics. it doesn't work for wage-earners at all. republicans right now, they've got nothing to offer wage earners. nothing. nothing is on the table. no job security, no health care, no jobs, package, nothing. and here is their focus. on thursday, republican lawmakers attended the american legislative exchange council's, a.l.e.c.'s annual policy summit. full disclosure, our parent company, comcast, along with many other parent corporations, are associated with a.l.e. krcht, a conservative conversation that pushes stand your ground and opposes the minimum wage increase. this summit basically was a back room event. there were no recording devices allowed. we really don't know for sure what they said. but we've got a pretty good idea. the two main speakers were these guys. failed republican vice presidential nominee, paul ryan from wisconsin. and, of course, our beloved canadian senator, now residing in texas, ted cruz.

no cameras in this event. but we know what they were talking about. >> we're getting more and more takers than makers in america. and we need to have more makers and less takers in america. if we have more takers, then we're denying people of their ability to make the most of their lives. >> if you raise the minimum wage, the inevitable effect will be number one, young people will lose their jobs. or not be able to get their first jobs. unemployment among young people will go up if the minimum wage goes up as president obama says. unemployment among hispanics, among african-americans, among those struggling to get their first job to climb the economic ladder will go up. >> these guys are just making this stuff up. they're making it up. there is no study anywhere that says for sure unemployment of young people is going to go up if we raise the minimum wage. it's never happened before. you know, it's guys like paul ryan and ted cruz.

groups like a.l.e.c. and the republican economic policies in general that keep wages stagnant at $7.25 an hour at the federal level. the republican mission, it is very clear. they want to keep labor cheap and profits for the top 1% as high as they can get them. and it's interesting. how paul ryan talks about the takers. let's talk about the takers for a moment. are the oil companies, are they takers? walmart? are they takers? on a local level, when they get tax abatements? how about boeing? are they a taker? they've got $9 billion worth ever incentives on the table just to stay in washington so workers can have a job. but, of course, the unions, they want too much money, right? let's talk about the takers. it's always the poor folks that the republicans love to pick on. let's talk about the food stamps that they have just cut out of the farm bill. their proposal is to get rid of $40 billion over the next ten years. this is the problem. they're supposed to be the takers. maybe if they had a good minimum

wage, maybe if they were working full-time jobs. maybe if they had health care. you could cut that food stamp program. but that's not the way it's supposeded to work. because the republican ideology, we have to protect the corporations, we have to protect the top 1%. and that's exactly what that chart has shown us. and don't you get tired of unions always getting beat up? if these workers didn't have a platform to protect them, where would they be? what do you say everybody in this country worked for $7.25 an hour? it's interesting. over the last 24 hours, not one franchise owner of a mcdonald's or any other fast food chain has come out and said you know what, you're asking for 15 bucks an hour, i can't afford that. i can't run this store oh if i'm paying you 15 bucks an hour. they're not doing it, because they're doing real well. get your cell phones out. i want to know what you think tonight on this issue. do republicans care about minimum wage workers? text a for yes, text b for no to 67622. you can always go to our blog at

ed.msnbc.com. we'll bring you the results later on in the show. it's interesting, the president this week was talking about income inequality, and upward mobility. how can anybody move up at $7.25 an hour? you know, if you pay better, you would get a better employee. you would get someone who would be more loyal to the business. and you would still make a profit. it's proven. i'm waiting for all of the fast food industry owners to step up on this program and tell me that you just can't make it if you pay your workers 15 bucks an hour. for more, let's bring in john nichols, washington correspondent of the "nation" magazine. actually, we'll go one state over to wisconsin in madison tonight. john, good to have you with us. you know, i think this is very impactful. we've never seen this before in 130 cities. what impact do you think these protests are going to have, if any? >> i think it's huge. and it's very, very significant that this is the second year that we have seen this sort of

protest, an organized, national effort to bring people out from behind the counters at fast food restaurants, put them with their allies and supporters on the streets of communities across this city. i was in some of the places where these protests took place. and there was nobody going by booing them. the horns were honking, you saw the thumbs up. people were cheering these workers on. and that fits with what the polls tell us, ed. polling says that 80% of americans believe that congress should raise the minimum wage above $10 an hour. so there's real passion there in this country. and i think we're beginning to raise that energy enough -- up enough, to pass laws in states and to make moves in cities. unfortunately, as you have illustrated already, we've got a lot of resistance in that republican house of representatives. >> you know, john, the fast food industry is very profitable. it's into the billions. they could afford to pay these people. how do we know? because they're ominously silent

about it. bottom line here is, these protests, i think, are going to have to continue. and these are brave workers. these are people without protections who are going out in front of their place of employment, saying i want a raise. and who knows how the owners are going to react to it. they could be taking names and over time they could be moved right out of those positions. i mean, these are brave americans that are stepping up, saying i'm willing to put my job on the line and speak up. now, these big corporations say they can't afford to pay their worke workers more. what's your reaction to that? what are the numbers in this industry? >> it's simply not the case they cannot afford to pay more. they're making massive profits. many of these companies are posting billion-dollar -- billion-plus-dollar quarterly profits. and so they're in the big leagues. they're making the money that they could easily move some of this down to their workers. and in really relatively minor levels of raises. but here's where the problem is,

ed. it's not just an issue for these corporations. they could afford it. but do you know the american taxpayers also on the line here. at mcdonald's, there are reports that, you know, last year, for instance, you had more than $1 billion in taxpayer money went to mcdonald's workers who were forced to rely on public assistance programs and other programs that aid people who are living literally well below the poverty level. so you understand, this isn't just about corporations paying their workers. it is also about corporations taking advantage of the taxpayer by paying such low wages. >> these corporations are taking advantage of what is on the table in the farm bill, and so the republicans can't have it both ways. they can't say that we're going to cut the food stamp program and we're not going to raise the minimum wage without hurting a whole bunch of people in this country. they're not takers. they're hard workers. it's a spring board to a better

life. but what's it going to take for the federal minimum wage to be increased with house republicans? i mean, that's a pipe dream. we all know that boehner would never bring something like that to a vote. the bottom line is, the democrats, the progressives are going to have to get control of both houses, and the white house if they're ever going to move workers forward. minimum wage. so the question is, is it a 2014 issue? is this a slam dunk for liberals who are out there campaigning to take over the house? >> the polling, ed, on this is incredible. it shows that 92% of democrats want to take the minimum wage above $10 an hour. 80% of independents favor it. 62% of republicans. the fact of the matter is, that the american people want a raise, and if we can't get it at the congressional level, they're going to start moving it in the states. the problem is, then you've got groups like a.l.e.c. trying to beat it back at the state level. there's going to have to be some political change to clear the way. >> well, here we go again.

we've got more good economic news. let's ring it up now to 47 straight months of private sector job growth. there isn't a country on the face of this earth that would not like to have this chart right here. you think some of these cash-strapped and deficit-strung countries in europe would like to have this when it comes to turning the private sector around? we're talking about 47 months. the jobless rate now is at 7% in this country. according to the bureau of labor statistics. we added 203,000 jobs in the month of november. it's all positive stuff. here's the bottom line. no republican help, no republican help for workers. no jobs package to make it better. this is all being done under president obama and the democrats' watch. john in this case coals, great to have you with us tonight. remember to answer tonight's question at the bottom of your

screen. share your thoughts on twitter and ed show and facebook. we always want to know what you think. coming up, a romney rerun. america has seen this movie before. but it's the only ticket that conservatives got to get into the theater. plus, rush limbaugh's crude comments about the president and the pope have catholics demanding penance. stay with us. we're right back. from the frozen tundra. ♪ that's mine. that's mine. ♪ come on, kyle. ♪ [ horn honks ] that's mine...kyle. [ male announcer ] revenge is best served with 272 horses. get the best offers of the season now. lease this 2014 ats for around $299 a month with premium care maintenance included. ♪

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it's durable. and it's 3 times cleaner. every day we're working to and to keep our commitments. and we've made a big commitment to america. bp supports nearly 250,000 jobs here. through all of our energy operations, we invest more in the u.s. than any other place in the world. in fact, we've invested over $55 billion here in the last five years - making bp america's largest energy investor. our commitment has never been stronger. time now for the trenders. ed show social media medication has decided and we are reporting. here are today's top trenders, voted on by you. >> vintage! so adorable. >> the number three trender. romney two. >> he has taken $716 billion out of the medicare trust fund to pay for obama care. >> obama care takes $716 billion from medicare to spend on obama care. >> the gop is dusting off some

romney health care talking points. >> the cuts, which do not come out of the medicare trust fund, actually make medicare more efficient. >> medicare, lots of spending, diverted from that program for obama care. >> that's the dumbest thing i've ever heard in my life! >> the number two trender. rush judgment. >> limbaugh is actually now going after the pope. >> the pope here has now gone beyond catholicism. >> i exhort you to generous solidarity and return to economics and finance to an ethical approach, which favors human beings. >> this is just pure marxism coming out of the mouth of the pope. >> catholic groups call on limbaugh to apologize to the pope. >> the pope is ripping america. the pope ripping capitalism. >> the pope isn't against capitalism. the pope is against capitalism serving profits. >> the pope ripping trickle-down economics. and obama is having an organize gam. >> no crudeness on the right is

there? >> he wants a capitalism that promotes people over profits. >> to hear the pope regurgitating this stuff, i was profoundly disappointed. >> and today's top trender. a rand plan. >> a federal judge ruled that detroit is officially eligible for chapter 9 bankruptcy. republican policies did all of this. when it comes to free trade, outsourcing of jobs, attacking labor. low taxes. of course, wee got to cut taxes. >> president obama sits back and watches this unfold. ken senator rand paul taking action. >> the kentucky senator wants to keep detroit a conservative utopia. >> what i'm promoting is something called economic freedom zones. >> these zones free up detroit to bail themselves out. >> reduction in individual and corporate tax rates. >> get rid of the capital gains. >> reduce the red tape and let businesses thrive. >> this is horrible. this idea much. >> i think really what we need to do is try something different. >>. >> let's turn now to michael eric dyson, georgetown university professor and msnbc

political analyst. that's all you've got to do, professor, is just take that red tape and then cut it. >> and then all of a sudden these jobs are going to show up. rand paul in detroit, and he wants to open up the gop's african-american engagement the office to reach out to voters. i mean, is he the best ambassador to the party? your thoughts on this effort. >> yeah, if he is, ed, it's a pretty -- it's an awful shame. because, look, his heart, i'm sure, is in the right place. but his mind and his mouth and economics are horrible. you know, cutting that red tape, slashing those kinds of opportunities or at least slashing that tape, thinking it will provide opportunity for those everyday normal people there is pretty lewd rouudicrol. the reality is what led to the problems we have now in detroit is the accumulation of capital, the disproportionate concentration of wealth at the top. now with this disaster capitalism going on there with the filing of bankruptcy, hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent on everything except the people.

they're now contemplating, as you know, the judge said that the pension funds are now vulnerable to rebuff, which means that millions of -- you know, that hundreds of thousands of people over the years who have -- who have invested in those funds will not be able to draw down from them. so if rand paul wants to be a friend to those people in detroit, figure out a way to stimulate the economy, figure out a way to return democratic rule back to the people who are duly sworn in to do so and give the mayor of detroit a powerful hand here and not make him a manager of the city. >> i mean, i just think it's beautiful that it's rand paul, the guy who talks about freedom so much. >> right. >> the guy that loves freedom and the constitution. i guess they don't pay any attention to the state constitution and the state of michigan to go in there and deny these retired workers their pensions, make them vulnerable. they're going to cut them at least 50%. but, you know, the republicans say they've got this african-american outreach program. what does rand paul have

policy-wise that is going to help african-americans in the city of detroit? >> i can't imagine a darn thing. i mean, he went to howard university and was rebuffed. he thought those kids were operating at kindergarten level and discovered they were much more sophisticated. he's going into a city where the leadership there -- he should speak to dr. wendell anthony, who appears on your show. he should talk to the naacp who is there. he should speak to people who know intimately and well the condition, plight and predict of that city and to talk about, again, if you want to restore some kind of semblance of strength to that city, talk about what michael moore has made films about. the economic infrastructure which was related to manufacturing jobs. as you have already documented, those jobs have flown. we've got the downsizing, outsourcing, capital flight. you've got the exploitation of indigenous marketplaces across the waters to exploit those workers and to degrade the workers here. how about boosting the minimum wage, if you want to do something that's going to be helpful to those citizens, then do that. >> yeah.

el with, the other thing is, rand paul's plan is to have detroit bail itself out. now, that's a dandy. no one knows what the heck he's talking about. look, it takes -- >> instagram, man. he's caught on instagram doing selfies, a self bailout, a self picture. this is the selfie generation. self-serve. it's good for the gas on your automobile, but nothing to do with baling yourself out. if the people could bail themselves out, they wouldn't be of economic condition they're in. they didn't get themselves in that condition. and it's been going on the last 40 to 50 years as dr. wendell anthony talked about, the report in de moss and other outlets have talked about the reality that this is an economic crisis that has been building for years. the shift from manufacturing to service industries has depleted resources. the jobs went out to the suburbs. and now they're returning to detroit to take it back over to buy up the buildings and disaster capitalism at its worst in detroit right now. >> with, and the conservative media in this country constantly

fails to point out how the city of detroit has repeatedly been short-changed of tax money that is due to them. they have not been properly, fairly funded by the state, where other cities have gotten money. but, of course, detroit has been short-changed. quickly, dr. michael eric dyson, i want to ask you about nelson oh mandela. the story that i opened up with tonight was the striking workers yesterday in 130 cities. would nelson mandela have been out with those workers? >> absolutely. this was a man who to the chagrin of many people, even refused to renounce, you know, the taking up of arms against, you f know, the incredible inequality going on there, even though he counselled peace and progressive. he would have been out there with our workers, because he understood the workers are the backbone of any society. if we can't treat them with respect and dignity and grace, then the society itself is built upon a lie. and will not last long. >> michael eric dyson, great to have you on "the ed show."

have a great weekend. appreciate your time. thank you. coming up, the opportunity gap. it's widening. the numbers show it. and republicans seem to be pushing more americans over the edge with their policies. plus, the georgia insurance commissioner makes a wrong turn in his obama care analogy, and lands in tonight's pretenders. but next, i'm taking your questions live from the north country. "ask ed" next on msnbc. [ tires screech ] ♪ [ male announcer ] 1.21 gigawatts.

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in some of these red states, the democrats and the liberals didn't lose by much. talk about income inequality. push hard for obama care. let those personal stories come. and i guarantee you, some red states are going to flip. but it's going to take an investment to get it done. our next question comes from roosevelt barfield. why is the right wing bashing the pope? well, they didn't bash the pope until the pope started talking about income inequality. until he started talking about greed. until he started talking about the worshipping of money. and where the poor are in the world. and in this country. he started addressing all of those moral issues. and that, of course, was like a stick in your hand into a wasp's nest and all of the bugs come out after you. that's what has spurred all of this. this is a pope that is political. this is a pope that is willing to say things that other popes

haven't said in contemporary time. and it strikes right at the heart of republican policies, and the conservatives, they just can't take it. stick around, "rapid response panel" next on "the ed show" after this. i'm seema mody with your cnbc market wrap. stocks rally on friday. the dow up nearly 200 points. the s&p 500 added 20, and the nasdaq up 29. better unemployment numbers are pushing up interest rates, sending potential home buyers to small banks and lenders. and barnes and noble shares were down nearly 12% today on news that the securities and exchange commission is investigating the book chain. and despite their $450 price tag, starbucks sold out of a limited edition starbucks card friday. only 1,000 of the rose-colored cards were available. that's it from cnbc. first in business worldwide. people don't have to think about

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the opportunity gap in america is now as much about class as it is about race. and that gap is growing. so if we're going to take on growing inequality and try to improve upward mobility for all people, we've got to move beyond the false notion that this is an issue exclusively of minority concern. and we have to reject a politics that suggests any effort to address it in a meaningful way somehow pits the interest of a deserving middle class against those of an undeserving poor in search of handouts. >> welcome ba to "the ed show." president obama shifting gears earlier this week ask, put the focus on the growing income inequality in this country, calling it the defining challenge of our time. how can you not agree? look at the numbers. we talk about income inequality all of the time on this show. because this is where america

is. and we've got to do something about this chart. you've seen the vulture chart time and time again. this trend has been going on for decades. none of the republicans have a remedy for this. and it's only getting worse, income inequality hit a record high in 2012. the top 1% took home 1/5 of the country's household income last year. good for them! isn't that awesome? but what about the folks on the blue line? the gap between the 1% and the average worker in this country is the widest it has ever been. the bigger the gap, the harder it is for americans to climb the economic ranks of opportunity. this should concern anyone who believes in the american dream. but the folks on the right wing, the conservative movement, know that it's their own policies that really put this country where it is right now. so they're responding with the only way they know how by screaming about class warfare. >> he's playing the class

warfare card. >> obama uses elaborate rhetoric, when basically all he needs to do is just wear a t-shirt that says eat the rich because that's basically what his message is. >> what we have seen in the speech yesterday, and i think what we'll continue to see, is more class warfare, more radical redistribution, because this is who he is. he is essentially state, leftist, a socialist. so he believes in class warfare. >> just keep in mind, the tape you just saw, that montage, all of those folks are in the top 2%. you know when you make that kind of money, it's easy to sit back and say, well, i'm not going to give it to anybody else. i'm not going to give the opportunity to someone else. i'm paying way too much in taxes. that's the selfishness that this country needs to address. and that's the selfishness that will bring this country down. we're afraid to reinvest in workers. if we've got all these corporate profits going through the roof, if we've got a political party

in this country that doesn't want to help out the down trodden, that complains about the possibility of a wage increase, yet wants to cut the food stamp program, where's that going to leave us? that's their remedy for the vulture chart? joining me now is our rapid response panel, mike pappen anton antonio, occupy wall street protester, jesse lagreca. good to have you with us tonight. all we're looking for is a remedy here. what turns this around? what do the republicans have that would turn this around for the middle class? doesn't even care about the middle class. and i guess my question to you, mike, what do we have to do, or what could be done to motivate corporations to really reinvest in our work force and turn this wage depression around? >> ed, i think that the answer is with what obama has already started doing. timing is everything in a speech like the one that obama gave. while hasselbeck and stossel,

stuart, varney and other folks in fox world were making economic inequality almost a yuk yuk joke to their viewers, obama has recognized a simple truth. and that is that the anger is potentially boiling over about this economic disparity between -- >> it is anger. >> it's -- look, 130 cities of anger is what we saw, and it's building every year. it goes all the way back to the beginning of the occupy movement. and we saw these same types of things happening last year. it continues to grow. obama recognizes it. one quick point, ed, i think is very important. the world -- the world economic forum, very respected organization. they interviewed about 1,500 business folks and academia folks. you know what those people said? they identified this split of the have and have nots as the number-one problem on planet earth. planet earth. and here's what they said. that it's going to cause such unrest that at some point, you

can't get the jeannie back into the bottle. >> the president knows this. and the president is trying to do something about it. but he has no congressional help whatsoever from the object strokters. i've said this before. i believe that the american people mentally, they're not in the library. they're in the street. we saw it yesterday. jesse lagreca, you have been in the street. and the question is, the president is harnessed on this issue. he is harnessed. not much he can do. what can be done as the president than to just go out and talk about it and motivate people, jesse? >> well, you would wish that the president could do more to elect politicians that would actually do something on behalf of the 99%. he doesn't have that power. so i thinkit smart politics for him to raise a ruckus over this. the other side of the aisle has no interest in helping working class people whatsoever. we are living in the matrix. and instead of being a battery, they want to turn you into an overdrawn checking account. what it really comes down to, these are the real problems

people care about. working class people don't care about the deficit, they don't care about ending abortion. they need a paycheck so they can support their family. and to listen to republican politicians and the talking heads at fox news bad mouth working class people, come on. we already know that the republican party is the party of mitt romney. could care less about anybody less than $250,000. for the president to come out and make this speech is extremely wise politics, because it's what people care about and that's how you win elections. >> he's got to stay on it. the democrats have got to stay on it. i think this is a winning issue. mike, how do you get the republicans to get into this discussion? the president talked about that earlier this week. you know, the big elephant in the room is the other party that obviously has no plan, that obstructs everything. but we have to engage in this discussion. i mean, it would seem to me that people who go to town huh meetings with republican representation just take the vulture chart there. and say what's your remedy for this? what do you have on the table that will deal with this issue

right now. what needs to be done? these red liners, these 1 and 2% folks, they just got damn lucky. hell, they've been lucky the last 30 years. that's not the case. i mean, something has to be done. how do you engage republicans about this without talking about socialism? >> here's the problem. the person who shows up at the town hall meeting doesn't have lobbyists. the person who shows up at the town hall meeting doesn't have millions of dollars to give to the wall street republicans. so that becomes a problem. you can't have -- you can't have a playing field that really amounts to anything. but what can happen, ed -- what can happen is exactly what you're doing here tonight. it is the discussion. it's where people start talking about 40 years ago, the pay ratio between a ceo and worker was 20-1. it's 500-1. for every $1 a worker makes, the ceo makes $500. it's the discussion that you're putting on the table.

it's the discussions that obama is putting on the table. hell, it's the discussion that the pope put on the table. and right now -- >> exactly. >> the trick is -- >> now they don't like the pope anymore! >> well, you know, it is what you would expect. but the problem is, the deck is stacked very much in favor of the wall street republicans. because the average person simply doesn't have the after ainfluence or influence. >> jesse lagreca, the protests yesterday. what's going to be done, what impact did it have? >> i look at it, they didn't have think tanks to go out there. it wasn't like msnbc was running info meshls the way fox news with the tea party. people care about this because it's a problem. until the problem is addressed, there needs to be pressure in the streets. during occupy wall street, that's what the whole thing was about. what i laugh at, the republican party has kind of taken that message and turned it on its head. instead of doing something, the plan is switch and moan.

blame it on obama and move back to complain about obama care. to me if working class people aren't fighting, we're going to lose. and that makes it that much more important for us to fight. >> jesse lagreca, mike papantonio, thanks for being with us tonight. coming up, ohio republicans are trying to turn the state red by blocking progressive voters. their game plan, next. stay with us. clients are always learning more to make their money do more. (ann) to help me plan my next move, i take scottrade's free, in-branch seminars... plus, their live webinars. i use daily market commentary to improve my strategy. and my local scottrade office guides my learning every step of the way. because they know i don't trade like everybody. i trade like me. i'm with scottrade. (announcer) ranked highest in investor satisfaction with self-directed services by j.d. power and associates.

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welcome back to "the ed show." this is the story for the folks who take a shower after work. where people of all races where allowed to participate. his activism moved his nation away from its racist separatist apartheid history toward one where every vote counts. nearly two decades later, our country which was founded on democracy is still struggling with voters' rights and

suppression based on age, race, and class. republican lawmakers around the country are working hard to chip away at voting rights. even the supreme court, especially in key swing states like ohio. ohio went for president obama in both of the last two presidential elections. voters had to endure some of the longest lines in the country to cast their ballots. after striking down key provisions of the voting rights act, republicans are doing everything in their power to turn every state red this way. now, republicans are especially worried about our next guest. ohio state senator nina turner has gained in popularity. state senator turner is running for secretary state of ohio. if she wins, she will no doubt make it easier for ohioans to vote. that is an issue that is going to hit the life blood of a lot of people in the buckeye state. last month the gop-controlled ohio senate voted to cut early voting by a full week. the senate also passed a bill

restricting absentee ballots. republicans are targeting very specific groups and neighborhoods. and the votes of senior citizens, poor people, ethnic minorities, and college students, they are being blocked. ohio state senator nina turner joins us tonight. i think this is a vitally important story. if the democrats want the white house in 2016, you better win ohio. history tells us that. if these draconian laws go through, these suppressive laws go through, it is going to put ohio in the balance just by the legislation itself. senator, good to have you with us tonight. appreciate your time. do you think there -- i want to ask you about nelson mandela. do you think there is a parallel between what nelson mandela fought for and what you're going through in the state of ohio? >> very similar parallels.

and what president nelson mandela certainly was a force of nature. he was a force for social justice and good. and although we're talking a lot about his dignity and how humble he was and how strong he was, the fact of the matter is that he used his might to fight for justice in the fight for good. when we look at the long lines in that first election in south africa where black africans had the opportunity to vote, it was through that election that president nelson mandela was elected at the age of 75 years old. we see parallels in this country not only in the jim crow south in this country but also right now as republicans across the country and in the state of ohio are trying to turn back the hands of time when it comes to giving access to the voters, to the ballot box. it is the one place, ed, where all of us are equal. and we have a moral obligation to stand up for everybody's right to vote. it is shameful what is happening in this state and across this country at the hands of the gop.

>> this is socially engineering the vote. that's how i view it. are these bills a direct attack on democratic voters? >> not just democratic voters, ed. i think in some ways all voters. but the targets are certainly young people. the targets are elderly people. the targets are poor people. because those are the groups that will have the greatest hurdles to summount. in 2004 in ohio the lines were so long, it was very reminiscent of what happened in florida in 2012. people had to wait in urban areas for almost seven hours over 170,000 voters left the lines, they didn't vote because they were just that frustrated. ohio tried to correct itself and since then, since that

corrections, elections have been running relatively smoothly. but now since the election of president barack obama, the republicans have decided that they don't like folks coming out to vote. and so they want to take it away. i mean, the restrictions on strict voter i.d. bills we know will have terrible impact on people in the state of ohio. the technicalities that they want to place on absentee voting, it just absolutely makes no sense. and this is not happenstance, this is deliberate. >> yeah. and finally, governor kasich, how can he be silent on this? i mean, has he not read the bills? is he dodging this? does he not want to get in this fight? where does he stand? >> ed, he has not said anything about what is happening in the general assembly. that is for unfortunate. as the leader of this state he should speak out on this. but the people who have the last say in ohio, activist groups are saying you will not take away

the greatest equalizer we have which is the right to vote. >> all right. nina turner, we will stay on the story. thank you. and by the way, have a good birthday tomorrow. your birthday tomorrow, ohio state playing a big game against michigan state. i don't know. could be a real big day. could be a big day. >> thank you. >> good luck to you. that's "the ed show." i'm ed shultz. "politicsnation" with reverend al sharpton starts right now. good evening, rev. >> good evening, ed. and thanks to you for tuning in. tonight's lead, obama care plus success equals one massive right wing freakout. president obama's health care law is working. and many on the right just can't handle it. here's what i'm talking about. >> well, nelson mandela stood up against a great injustice and was willing to pay a huge price for that. that's the reason he's mourned today because of that struggle he performed. bu